Message from Stack President

Today I am pleased to announce the Stack Modular Structures Group of Companies has officially completed our formal partnership with Bird Construction Inc. [TSX:BDT]. Over the past year, many of our current and future clients have expressed their support for this partnership.

As a current leader in modular design and manufacturing, we pledge our continued commitment to taking a modular industry, that many consider to be in its infancy, to the forefront of North American construction. Today's announcement allows Stack the ability to design, manufacture and install a turnkey modular building faster and more efficiently than what has previously been seen by the marketplace.

Modular is the future of construction in Canada and the United States and today is a milestone for the modular industry. To play such a paramount role in delivering the future of construction from coast to coast, is both a privilege and honour. We look forward to serving our clients for many decades to come and are very eager to play this pivotal role in the modular building sector alongside our partner, Bird Construction.

TORONTO, Sept. 13, 2017 /CNW/ - Bird Construction Inc. ("Bird") (TSX: BDT) today announced that it has acquired 50% of the outstanding shares of Stack Modular Structures Ltd. and 50% of Stack Modular Structures Hong Kong Limited (together the "Stack Modular Group of Companies" or "Stack"). The undisclosed purchase price and related transaction expenses were funded with existing working capital.

Stack is a modular construction company with production operations in China. Stack produces steel frame modules for permanent construction. The modules are suited for the hotel, senior housing, office space and general housing sectors in the North American market.

Bird and Stack have complementary knowledge, resources and expertise that positions them well to serve the permanent modular construction market in Canada and the United States.

"Bird and Stack form a strong partnership, with Stack's expertise in modular construction complementing Bird's business as a leading provider of general contracting services. Combining this expertise, the vision is to deliver projects faster and more efficiently to our clients across North America. Aligned with our strategy, we have been considering a range of ways to further expand our sources of revenue and increase our competitiveness. We believe we can achieve this by participating directly in the modular prefabrication market which we anticipate will present significant opportunities over the coming years", commented Ian Boyd, President & CEO of Bird.

Stack Modular is proud to have our President, Jim Dunn, presenting at this year's CHIC conference in Toronto. Jim will be discussing how modular construction is revolutionizing the way hotel chains are expanding their asset portfolios. Modular construction methods are enabling hotel developers to complete projects up to 60% faster than traditional methods.

For 21 years, the Canadian Hotel Investment Conference has established itself as the definitive source for information, insight and opinion on today’s Canadian lodging market. For senior executives from across North America this business conference delivers outstanding insight on where the industry is today, where its heading and the options it can deliver.

While many companies are reluctant to change suppliers or materials – why change what works? Stack Modular is constantly striving to find higher quality and more cost effective products to offer our customers.

To properly evaluate new materials Stack has implemented a check list system for approval of new suppliers, new products and new materials.

Does the product/material have the required certifications – (CWB, CSA, ASTM, UL etc.)?

Has the supplier’s manufacturing facility passed the Stack Modular on site audit?

Has the supplier provided representative samples to Stack for testing?

Has the product/material been tested on site under typical construction conditions?

Did the product/material work as expected?

Did the product or material require any changes in the normal usage or installation practice as compared to what is currently being used? If yes detail changes in the construction process and submit the report to the director of construction for review.

How did installation time compare to current product?

How did the quality of the finished assembly compare to current product?

Final recommendation.

Over the past 2 months Stack has built several full sized rooms including a kitchen, a living room and a bathroom which were used to test dozens of potential cost savings – both initial material costs as well installation costs. These tests included the installation of a full scale kitchen, bathroom floor and wall tiles, tile corner trim, bathroom exhaust fans, dozens of different paints, primers and plaster, EZ fire tape, EZ trim, ACP exterior cladding, many different wall papers, LED lights, fire caulking, window and door profiles, door and window hardware and much more.

These tests have led to changes that will be implemented in Stack Modular’s 4 story, 48 apartment modular complex due to begin construction in late August and improve the final product and customer satisfaction: A quieter more cost effective bathroom fan, a new plaster (mud) that improves paint adhesion, a new tile corner trim that improves corner appearance, a new wall paper that installs faster and has a better corner finish and a new window profile are a few examples of improvements.